The world has been kind to Patrick Sharp. In the last year, Sharp has surpassed the 200 career goal mark, won his second Stanley Cup championship, and became a father for the second time. His fortunate run may be aided by the bad luck of another in the coming months.

Steven Stamkos, the Tampa Bay Lightning scoring machine, has been sidelined by a broken tibia. He underwent successful surgery and is expected to miss at least enough time to put his 2014 Winter Olympic spot on Hockey Canada in jeopardy. Patrick Sharp was not necessarily considered a lock coming into the NHL season. The Canadian hopeful list is long enough to wrap around Canada three times as the talent pool is easily the deepest of any team qualified for the round-robin hockey tournament. [Read more…]